As I begin writing this post, everyone around me is connected, but not with each other, or their surroundings, but with the digital world; facebook, twitter, 24hr news streaming and online entertainment. I’m sitting at Circular Quay station, one of Sydney’s busiest and better known with great views of the Opera House, Harbour Bridge and harbour. Leaning against the rail, a woman scrolls through a feed on her iphone, six other iphones are near me, their owners repeating the same behaviour. A man leans against the wall watching a video on his galaxy note, several other people immersed in their smart phones stand either side and two people sit on a bench reading from iPads. Once I board my train there are only 3 people that aren’t interacting with a screen of some sort. It’s an interesting and strange public notion. While every one of them is speaking to someone, looking at photos or engaging in some form of social activity but each is simultaneously doing so in their own world.

Within urban precincts especially, social media and advances in technology allow people to share experiences with one another without even being there. Shared experiences now allow greater connectivity not only with each other but with the places we visit. Dealings with an invisible social capital are now as important as the physical attributes somewhere is made up of.